Wednesday, December 21, 2011

The 11 most CastleWorthy Games of 11

2011 saw the release of some of the greatest games I have ever played, unfortunately and ultimately disappointingly it also saw the release of the worst (MW3 thus will not be making it onto this list aside from this small mention.) I have tried to distill this list of 11 games across all platforms from iOS to xbox.

Here are some games that i rated highly.

The 11 Most CastleWorthy

games of 2011

#11

Battlefield 3

Xbox, PS3, PC

Yes, 11th place, deal with it.

Battlefield 3 falls short with its single player campaign, often glitching and doing a myriad of strange and physically impossible things. The story is convoluted and often hard to follow or so drab that i simply forgot what the point of my mission was, the only way i blundered my way through the whole campaign was because of a compass with an objective marker. The graphics are beautiful, and the feel of the game had me shitting my pants at some points, but in the grand scheme of things, this was not my favourite game of 2011.

#10

Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Xbox, PS3

This game. While it was one of the sexiest games of the year, the over the shoulder camera angle and the often clunky movements lowered its possible rating status. That and a large number of bugs that stopped me being able to complete certain missions brought this down to no. 10. Other than that, the story was largely enjoyable and well scripted.

#9

Tiny Wings.

iOS

iOS gaming has really taken off this year with the advent of the iPhone 4 and the ability to handle bigger and better graphics. And yet, the best game on iOS is Tiny Wings, a simple concept that provides hours of fun and acid tripping backdrops that make you want to shit rainbows. It also has some of the most enjoyably repetitive music in a game since Tetris.

#8

Dead Island

Xbox, PS3

So, this game was interesting. The single player portion got tedious after a while, The multiplayer (which was exactly the same as the single player except with 3 other people) was largely satisfying. While the first 20 to 30 hours i played i checked every nook and cranny, searching for unlucky zombies that i could gleefully bash their heads in and jump on the body, I eventually ended up just running through the zones, not because of fear of becoming a zombie myself, just due to the fact i had sunk 30 hours into the game and wanted to know how it ended. The answer: Poorly. however due to the amount of time and enjoyment i got out of the game initially, this bad boy earns itself 8th place.

#7

From Dust

xbox

An original little title specifically for the xbox. This put a whole new spin on the genre of God games, and was thoroughly enjoyable. With only about 10 hours of gameplay it felt a little short, but the levels were so much fun that it was easy to play them again and again.

#6

Trenched

Xbox

Here we have another xbox exclusive, and it is brilliant. A fresh take on the tower defence game format. Building bigger and better mobile trenches and slapping ever larger and crazier guns on your walking death machine. The story is pretty flaccid in places, but the interesting gameplay elements and fast action shooter like elements easily make up for it.

#5

LA. Noire

Xbox, PS3

Probably one of the most talked about games of 2011, and easily one of the more interesting. LA Noire didn't focus on traditional gameplay and instead used its high calibre graphics and a new motion capture system to create realistic characters and reactions. This only scored 5th place because after playing this game for a couple of hours you start to realise there isn't anything extra to the game, it doesn't get more interesting or the scale of the crimes don't really escalate, it just seems to tread water, banking on the fact that people will be impressed with the shiny graphics and the realism of the interrogation scenes.

#4

Bastion

Xbox

Boy I did not expect this to be so good. Again another xbox exclusive that just floored me. This little gem had probably the best story telling i have seen in a game for a long time, and i was utterly enthralled by the bright shining colours and absolutely beautiful level design. It's not an overly long game but i played it through twice once after the other. Like Tiny Wings, this has an excellent and addictive original sound track and also the best recurring story arc I've ever seen. The game encourages a second play through and the story line ties into the second play through and makes it a legitimate option. I loved it and i can't express enough how much this is worth your $10.

#3

Gears of War 3

Xbox

So, Gears 3, what is there to say about the finale in what is arguably one of the best games in the last few years, particularly once you add in the other two iterations of the series. This was a story i enjoyed every minute of, the gameplay only got better with each successive game and the graphics were superb. The multiplayer portion of Gears 3 was excellent, which was something i was pleasantly surprised by, the nice mix of tower defence and traditional gun slinging added a spark that made me want to play as much as possible.

#2

Assasins Creed: Revelations

Xbox, PS3

I love this series, i loved this game. Not only has it worked out how to expertly and exceptionally tell a single player story crossing multiple generations and eras, it also has a superb multiplayer experience. Probably the most original and definitely the most interesting multiplayer format i have ever seen. Instead of running around shooting people willy nilly, the multiplayer in this game focuses on stealth and strategy. Simply running around like rambo will not only make you lose your target but its also a very good way to get killed quickly and often in humiliating ways. The one downfall is that not enough people play it, and you often find yourself waiting 10 to 15 minutes for enough people to join a game to be able to play.

Two trailers for this one, one for the campaign.

and one to show you how awesome murdering someone can be in this unique multiplayer.

#1

The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim

Xbox, PS3, PC

& SURPRISE!

BATTLEFIELD 3

Both games you say? but i've already (perhaps you may claim unfairly) put Battlefield as number 11. Well, both games are epic. Both games are beautiful, Both games have problems. as i said earlier Battlefield falls short with its single player campaign, but what it lacks in solo play it more than makes up for with a seriously amazing multiplayer experience. Possibly the most fun multiplayer game i have ever played, and when you are lucky enough to be able to run into battle surrounded by a squad of your friends, all working together to play the game properly, utilising classes and vehicles, then it is a most stellar experience.

Skyrim is also excellent, it also has a few glitches, such as a backwards flying dragons, or being launched a kilometre into the air whenever a Giant hits you, most of these glitches can be forgiven considering the size of the world that you can explore without getting a single loading screen. Its one downfall is that there is no multiplayer ability, which considering the fact that you can recruit NPC adventurers in game to follow you around and help you, they should have made it possible to have other players do that job. But Skyrim wins simply for playability, The single player campaign lasts hours, hundreds of hours. I am 115 hours into this game and i am only just now starting on the main story line, i spent a lot of my time running around gaining the trust of various people, factions and cities, and buying all the houses i could possibly ever need. I would stick my dick in the xbox while this game was running if i wasn't worried about ruining the console and not being able to play anymore.

This trailer for Skyrim still takes my breath away, All of this footage is in game.

#0

And finally whilst this isn't actually a game, special mention goes to Euclideon studios for what potentially could be a game changing new bit of software. Pun intended. If you haven't seen this video yet, you need to get out from under that rock.